Donald Trump’s chaotic tariff system has received firm pushback from a US federal court. Three judges on the US Court of International Trade have found that Trump’s tariffs:
exceed any authority granted to the president … to regulate importation by means of tariffs.
The ruling made it clear that it is not a comment upon the effectiveness of Trump’s tariffs, but instead on whether Trump had the legal power to apply trade levies. They said that Trump’s actions were
impermissible not because it is unwise or ineffective, but because [federal law] does not allow it.
The Guardian reported that:
The court ruling immediately invalidates all of the tariff orders that were issued through the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law meant to address “unusual and extraordinary” threats during a national emergency.
Now, the US government has 10 days to issue new orders in line with injunction. However, Trump’s team have already begun the process of appeal, which could see the case taken to the Supreme Court.
Trump tariffs chaos
White House spokesperson, Kush Desai, said:
It is not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency.
Stephen Miller, Deputy Chief of Staff for the White House said:
The judicial coup is out of control.
However, these remarks ignore the fact that such sweeping tariffs cannot happen legally without the approval of Congress. In attempting to use an emergency act to push tariffs through, the administration effectively attempted to bypass the law. On top of that, the three judges on the panel were in unanimous agreement – including a Trump-appointed judge.
As ever, the only metric by which the US government operates is to consider any opposition to it to be partisan, unfair, biased, and/or corrupt. However, as the attorney general of New York,
Letitia James, said:
The law is clear: no president has the power to single-handedly raise taxes whenever they like.
This injunction will mean Trump will have to operate his tariff system in a much slower manner. And, of course, the missing approval of Congress will have to be part of the process.
Uncertainty
This lawsuit, amongst the many Trump faces, was filed by public interest law firm, the Liberty Justice Center alongside a number of small businesses. Ilya Somin, a law professor and co-plaintiff in the case, said:
If starting the biggest trade war since the Great Depression based on a law that doesn’t even mention tariffs is not an unconstitutional usurpation of legislative power, I don’t know what is.
The ruling from the judges further clarified:
The worldwide and retaliatory tariff orders exceed any authority granted to the President by IEEPA [International Emergency Economic Powers Act] to regulate importation by means of tariffs. The trafficking tariffs fail because they do not deal with the threats set forth in those orders.
The use of the emergency powers act, argued the Liberty Justice Center, created unnecessary uncertainty for small businesses and the market more broadly. Jeffrey Schwab, lead attorney for the centre, told CNN that the plaintiffs were looking for certainty:
They’re hopeful that these will be upheld by the appellate court so that they can continue their businesses with the certainty of what’s going to happen rather than the uncertainty of not knowing what the tariff rate is at any given time and whether it will change.
Schwab continued:
Obviously this is a very important case, not only because of the tremendous economic impact that it has on everybody, but particularly business and our businesses, but also because of the tremendous power grab that the administration is claiming here.
He can’t just assert unlimited authority to tariff whenever he wants.
Culture of intimidation
Whilst Trump himself has not publicly responded to the tariffs ruling, the response from those in his administration follows a pattern of intimidation of judges. Trump evidently operates with a policy of shock and awe, flooding and overwhelming the American public, media, and judiciary with unconstitutional, ill-thought-out, and often chaotic policies. Public resource site, Just Security, tracks legal challenges to Trump’s orders. Their counter currently sits at a whopping 249 active cases, with just 10 closed.
It is becoming increasingly routine for judges to deliver rulings that demonstrate how and why Trump’s orders are illegal. And, it is just as routine for Trump’s cronies to insist that the judiciary is biased against them.
Former Republican congressman Charlie Dent summed up exactly what’s going on:
It appears the president is being beaten in court on a regular basis because many of his executive orders are legally and constitutionally questionable. His lawyers are trying to argue weak cases and that’s why they’re losing.
Legal experts and former judges have spoken out about the constant recrimination and allegations of bias streaming from Trump and his supporters as contributing to a culture of intimidation. Of course, the poorly planned, outright offensive, and hotch-potch policies are the point – In Trump’s reality any challenges of logic, law, or common sense are biased attacks, rather than assertions of fact and expertise.
America no longer has a functioning democracy, with a legal system under intense pressure to conform from a belligerent administration. If they were a country in the Global South, they’d invade themselves to install the missing democracy faster than you can say ‘oh look, is that some oil we can steal over there?’
Featured image via the Canary
